Omaha, NE- The Tennessee Volunteers secured their inaugural College World Series title by defeating the Texas A&M Aggies on June 24. With their 60th victory, the Volunteers became the first college baseball team to achieve a 60-win season milestone since Wichita State’s 1989 triumph. The team’s journey to the pinnacle of college baseball was marked by standout performances from key players that will be remembered in Volunteer lore.
Pitcher Zander Sechrist set the tone for the game by starting with a strong 1-2-3 inning, striking out Jace LaViolette. Christian Moore then kickstarted the offense with a leadoff home run, clocking in at an exit velocity of 108.7 mph and a distance of 389 ft, giving the Vols an early lead. Moore’s 34th homer of the season showcased his power at the plate. Since joining Tennessee, Moore’s primary objective has been to win a championship, and his opening game home run exemplified his determined mindset.
After Moore’s home run, Blake Burke’s base hit and Dylan Dreiling’s walk put two runners on for the Vols. Kavares Tears grounding to first ended the threat. The Aggies, known for their strong pitching staff, tried to capitalize in the third inning but the Vols kept on rolling. In the third, Tennessee took a one-run lead with Burke’s double, Billy Amick’s groundout, and Dreiling’s sacrifice fly. Hunter Ensley and Tears added singles, prompting a pitching change for Texas A&M. Josh Stewart replaced Justin Lamkin, but Dean Curley quickly figured him out with a single to left, extending the lead to 3-1.
Sechrist completed an impressive performance in the top of the fifth, striking out all three batters he faced. This brought his total strikeouts to six in five innings of work. However, his day on the mound came to an end in the sixth after allowing back-to-back singles. Despite this, the senior only gave up one run and recorded seven strikeouts in 5.1 innings.
Taking over for Sechrist, Nate Snead stepped onto the mound with two runners on and one out. The Vols managed to secure the second out on a fielder’s choice, and Burke made a fantastic catch for the final out, preventing any further damage.
In the seventh inning, the Aggies posed a threat with two runners on and just one out. Snead, however, forced a fly out for the second out, and LaViolette grounded out for the third and final out of the inning.
It remained quiet for three consecutive innings until Dreiling came to the plate with Amick on first and crushed a two-run homer to right field, increasing Tennessee’s lead to 5-1. This marked Dreiling’s third home run of the CWS final, hitting one in each of the three games. Tears then hit a double two batters later, bringing in Hunter Ensley, who skillfully dodged a tag at the plate to extend the lead to 6-1.
As the game entered the eighth inning, Dylan Loy took over for Snead on the pitcher’s mound. With a runner on base and no outs, Loy threw two wild pitches in a row, allowing Jackson Appel to advance to third. Hayden Schott then drove him in with a single up the middle, narrowing Tennessee’s lead to 6-2. Caden Sorrell followed up with a double to bring in another run, making it a 6-3 game.
After surrendering two runs, Loy was replaced by Kirby Connell on the mound. Connell struck out the next two batters after allowing a single and putting two runners on base. His terrifying slider struck out numerous batters, keeping the Vols in front and escaping the jam unscathed.
Junior right-hander Aaron Combs then entered the game in the ninth inning to close it out. Combs surrendered a leadoff double to Gavin Grahovac, but then struck out LaViolette. A wild pitch moved a runner to third base, and Appel’s RBI single brought the Aggies within two runs. Combs followed up by striking out Hayden Schott.
Appel advanced to second base and then to third due to a balk. Another wild pitch allowed him to score, making it a one-run game.
With the score at 6-5 and the championship at stake, Combs struck out Ted Burton to secure the historic victory. Only seven teams in the 20-year history of the College World Series best-of-three format have managed to come back after losing the first game.
Blane Davis, a lifelong Tennessee fan from Columbia, Tennessee, had never seen his team win a championship until this season. He described the feeling as, “Unbelievable, a feeling like no other. A feeling I can’t describe. I have no words; I wish I did. I just don’t.” He also praised Burke for his significant improvement since last season, urging others to watch the film.
The NCAA baseball tournament’s top seed had not clinched a national championship since 1999, the inaugural year of national seeding. Tennessee ended the 25-year drought for number one seeds. The Volunteers also showcased the SEC’s dominance, becoming the sixth out of the last seven SEC teams to win the College World Series for the fifth year in a row.
Before Tony Vitello took over, Tennessee Baseball had gone 13 years without an NCAA appearance. Since his arrival, they have made five consecutive NCAA Tournaments, invested $100 million in stadium upgrades, secured three CWS berths in four years, and became the first team in school history to reach 60 wins and claim a championship. When asked about Vitello’s impact on the program, Davis remarked, “This program was in shambles 6-7 years ago. It literally resembled a high school stadium. Now, it accommodates 7,000-8,000 fans, which speaks volumes.”
Honorable Mentions:
MVP Dylan Dreiling with 11 RBIs, a .583 batting average and 13-24. 3 HR in the series.
Second baseman Christian Moore, Short Stop Dean Curley, Outfielder Dylan Dreiling, and Pitcher Zander Sechrist who all made the 2024 All-Tournament team.
The MLB draft is scheduled to begin on July 14. Christian Moore, Billy Amick, and Drew Beam of Tennessee are projected to go first round.